HARDCORE HIPHOP IN CHINA: SKINNY OG
April 25, 2024
1 Comment
INTERNATIONAL HIP-HOP IN CHINA 外国嘻哈艺人正在中国建设国际社区
SKINNY O.G.: Artist, Music Producer, and Owner/CEO of the Black China Music Company (BCMC)
Skinny O.G.：艺人、音乐制作人，以及黑人中国音乐公司（BCMC）的老板和CEO
China can be challenging for many foreigners, but SKINNY O.G. seems to have adapted seamlessly, thanks to a lifetime of traveling and bringing his hip-hop message to many cities and countries during his lifetime. As he raps on his recent song “Can You Speak Chinese?” he is still trying to learn Mandarin, but he is already fluent in French, after spending many years in Paris and in Cameroon, as a kid.
“I’m in the KTV just talkin’ about the music and the history,
and drinking like a fish, like my liver had immunity!
In China, we laugh, live, and love it the most,
and if you don’t come through, then you just won’t know
about the tai chi and about the pig feet
and about the baijiu, so my homie, let’s meet.”
So goes the recent rap from Skinny — who with fellow performer QUEEN DIAMOND aka SEDIA B., have made hundreds of musical appearances across China since 2015. In early 2016, the duo set up Black China Music Company, or BCMC, a Shanghai-based hip-hop and entertainment outfit that produces music in addition to organizing events and tours.
song name:CAN YOU SPEAK CHINESE?
对于很多外国人来说，中国可能会是一个挑战，但似乎Skinny O.G.已经完美地适应了这里，这要得益于他一生中从未停下脚步的旅行，并且乐此不疲地将他的嘻哈精神传递到各个国家和城市。在他最近的歌曲“你会说中文吗？”中，显示他还在努力学普通话，但他已经会说很流利的法语了，因为在小时候他就在巴黎和喀麦隆呆了很多年。
“我在KTV里只谈论音乐和历史，
像鱼一样地喝酒，我的肝脏就像拥有酒精免疫！
在中国，我们笑着，活着，还有爱，这是最常见的，
如果你从没有经历过，你就不会知道
关于太极和猪脚
关于白酒，所以我的朋友们，我们在中国相见吧。”
Skinny最近的说唱也是如此，她与同为表演者的Queen Diamond（又名Sedia B）自2015年以来在中国各地做了数百场演出。2016年初，两人成立了中国黑人音乐公司（Black China Music Company，简称BCMC），这是一家总部位于上海的嘻哈娱乐机构，除了组织活动和巡演外，还制作音乐。
Skinny O.G. (back row with white bandana) poses with some of the Black China Music Company artists and technicians in Shanghai, 2018. (Photo courtesy of BCMC)
2018年，Skinny O.G.（后排白色大手帕）在上海与一些中国黑人音乐公司的艺术家和技术人员合影（图片由BCMC提供）
A native of New York City, Skinny came to China on a mission to import authentic hip-hop and raise the profile of China’s music scene. Since arriving, he has toured dozens of cities, many of which had never before seen any foreign performers, let alone Black ones. “There are relatively few Black people in China,” says Skinny. “So anywhere we go, we immediately stand out.”
But while many “Laowai” might see the negative aspects of living in China, Skinny always puts it into a global perspective, reminding us that there are good and bad people anywhere you go in the world. “How you carry yourself in a time of adversity can have the greater impact on the outcome of the experience, especially if you turn it into a teachable moment, or you transform a stranger into a friend.”
During his time in China, Skinny has always felt “extremely respected” by local Chinese, and many of his fans have been people who never paid attention to hip-hop, before they heard his music or listened to his lyrics.
Skinny attributes this success not only to the authenticity and quality of BCMC’s music, but also to the sincerity with which he promotes the ethos of REAL HIPHOP, which includes unity, racial tolerance, youth outreach, community building, intercultural education, and facilitating communication.
With this positive attitude, it is clear how Black China Music has bridged the international divide to bring so many Chinese and foreign hip-hop artists under a common umbrella.
Not only has BCMC thrived in China by putting out a consistent stream of extremely good music, which has been applauded by foreigners and locals alike, but just like the name of the company implies, all of Skinny O.G.’s recorded music has been created with the help of his multinational crew.
Skinny是纽约人，来到中国的目的是带来正宗的嘻哈音乐，提高中国音乐界的知名度。自从来到这里，他已经参观了几十个城市，其中许多城市以前从未见过任何外国表演者，更不用说黑人了。“中国黑人相对较少，”Skinny说，“所以无论我们去哪里，我们都会立刻脱颖而出。
但是，尽管许多“老外”可能会看到生活在中国不好的方面，但Skinny总是把它放在全球的视野中，提醒我们，无论你去哪里，世界上都有好人和坏人。“在多元环境中如何调整自我的心态，会对体验的结果产生更大的影响，特别是当你把它看成一个可以学习的时刻，或者当你把一个陌生人变成一个朋友的时候。
在中国期间，Skinny一直觉得自己受到当地华人的“极度尊重”，他的许多歌迷在听到他的音乐或听他的歌词之前，都是从来不关注嘻哈的人。Skinny将这一成功不仅归功于BCMC音乐的真实性和质量，还归功于他倡导真正的嘻哈精神的真诚，这种精神包括团结、种族宽容、青年外展、社区建设、跨文化教育和促进交流。
Skinny O.G. (back row, center) as lead MC of the Freestyle Kingz of the Foundation Hip-Hop Band, in Shanghai, 2016. (Photo courtesy of BCMC)
Skinny O.G.（后排，中）担任嘻哈基础乐队“即兴国王们”的主持人，2016年，上海。（图片由BCMC提供）
China has millions of discerning hip-hop fans who know the real thing when they see it. As Skinny O.G. puts it “you have to talk to people in order to build awareness and raise empathy, and in today’s world with challenges like the COVID-19 virus, it is more important than ever to have deep conversations that can help us meet future challenges together … music is one of the ways I can do that.”
With everything from thoughtful songs about love and heartbreak, to hardcore tracks detailing the challenges facing Black people in America which subsequently gave birth to hip-hop itself, BCMC has gathered a following in China that ranks them at the top of the underground hip-hop scene. “If you’re good at what you do … then there’s no problem in China, because you are what they’re looking for … that’s why when anyone wants the best foreign hip-hop artists in China, they call BCMC.”
有了这种积极的态度，很明显，黑人中国音乐是如何做到嫁接国际桥梁，把这么多中外嘻哈艺术家纳入同一个的保护伞下的。BCMC不仅在中国蓬勃发展，推出了一系列非常好的音乐，受到了外国人和当地人的一致好评，而且正如该公司的名称所暗示的那样，Skinny O.G.的所有录制音乐都是在其跨国团队的帮助下创作的。
中国有数以百万计有眼光的嘻哈迷，当他们看到真正的东西时，他们就知道了。正如Skinny O.G.所说，“你必须与人们交谈，才能了解情况同时提高同理心，在当今世界面临着像COVID-19病毒这样的挑战，比以往任何时候都更需要进行深入的交谈，帮助我们共同应对未来的挑战……音乐是我可以做到的方式之一。”
从所有都源于爱情和心碎的音乐，到详细描述美国黑人所面临的挑战的硬核歌曲（后来诞生了嘻哈音乐本身），BCMC在中国聚集了一批追随者，将他们视为地下嘻哈音乐界的顶端代表。“如果你对自己的本职做的很好……那么在中国就没有问题，因为你就是他们要找的人……这就是为什么当有人想要中国最好的外国嘻哈艺术家时，他们就叫BCMC。”
翻译：龙胆囡 Chinese translator: AD
Website: blackchinamusic.com
IG follow: skinnyog_bcmc
QQ: Skinny OG
Audiomack: Black China Music
YouTube: Black China Music
Wechat: skinnyog
Pyro: Skinny O.G.
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Recent Posts
BCMC 2019精彩回顾！BCMC Recap 2019!
April 28, 2024
No Comments
INTERNATIONAL HIP-HOP IN CHINA 外国嘻哈艺人正在中国建设国际社区
April 28, 2024
No Comments
